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MOUNT TRIGLAV, Slovenia Our citizenship documents should come any day. After all, the Klamath Falls husband-wife team of Jim Ballard and Kathie Lang and I are now regarded as “true Slovenians.” Gaining Slovenian status doesn’t come easy. It involves a long hike in to a mountain hut, then a nontechnical but challenging climb to the summit of Mount Triglav, the tallest mountain the Julian Alps. Once on top, first-timers are instructed to bend over and sanctify the accomplishment with an odd tradition three lashes on the buttocks. Our guide, Jernej “Jerry” Knop, happily performed the ritualistic ceremony, giving each of us the lashes with our climbing rope. At an elevation of 9,396-feet, Triglav doesn’t sound dauntingly tall. But unlike many Cascades and Sierra Nevada mountains, the least difficult route begins in the Krma Valley near the town of Bled at a relatively low elevation, about 3,051 feet. The immediate goal is the Kredarica Hut, reached after about 6-1/2 miles of hiking, always up, through a flower-filled forest of beech and spruce trees, past a sheepherder's cabin and, above timberline, beautifully carved limestone valleys and a zig-zag trail to the hut. From the Kredarica Hut, the trip becomes a climb, one highlighted, literally, with a final push up a 1,312-foot rock via ferrate, or “iron road,” climb. Jerry led the way, all of us roped and in harnesses, sometime clipping carabiners onto cables or grasping embedded handholds. We followed the most-used route that first stairsteps to Middle Triglav, then descends across a narrow, exposed ledge with precipitous drops on both sides, before again ascending, again using cables and iron holds to climb the ladder-like route to Triglav’s summit. Triglav is the centerpiece of Slovenia’s Triglav National Park, Crater Lake National Park’s new “brother” park. It’s a climb done by thousands of people each year. For Slovenians, it’s a ritual of passage, especially since a former Slovene president declared that every Slovenian should climb Triglav at least once in their lives. It’s Slovenia’s “National Mountain,” as evidenced by being featured on the country’s flag. The shape of Triglav has been described as a three-headed monster because it has three main peaks, so its name derives from the locally pronounced “Tri glave.” During July and August it’s reportedly common to see conga lines of hundreds of men and women of all ages ascending and descending. Most people take two days, sometimes completing the ascent on the first day before retreating for the night at a mountain hut, or as Jerry and we three amigos did stopping and staying overnight at a hut, then tackling the summit after the following morning’s first light, regrouping and making the hike down. Although it’s said that people in reasonably good shape can climb Triglav, there are reality checks. It’s not a given. Weather conditions are important. More than a dozen memorial plaques affixed on Triglav’s rock walls tell of people, including a group of teenagers, killed on the mountain by lightning. We didn’t climb with lightning speed, but clambered slow and steady, only infrequently stopping to appreciate the views. Below us was the Kredarica Hut, where we had spent an uneasy night and eaten breakfast less than an hour earlier. As we climbed, more impressive were the peaks of neighboring Julian Alps mountains, some in Italy, some in Austria, and, to the south, glimpses of the Adriatic Sea. As we climbed, clouds occasionally surrounded Triglav like gigantic pillows, smothering the long-distance views but adding another sort of beauty. After about 1-1/2 hours we stood on Triglav’s summit. Its landmark Aljaz Tower, placed atop Triglav by priest-mountaineer Jakob Aljaz in 1895, was missing because it’s undergoing repairs. Instead, we stood near a miniature replica for photos and, of course, the ceremonial whacking. We unhurriedly celebrated our success, savoring the 360-degree panoramic views as clouds gathered before making our way back to the hut and, more hours later, the Krma Valley. By the end of the day our butts were whipped, but in the best possible way. Reach freelance writer Lee Juillerat at [email protected] or 541-880-4139. ____________________________ Slovenia’s national symbol This year marks the 240th anniversary of the first ascent of Mount Triglav, Slovenia’s highest peak and the iconic symbol that is featured on the country’s flag. In 1777, Balthasar Hacquet, a scientist and mountaineer, first attempted the ascent via mountain pastures of Konjica and Velo Polje, a route that has since then become known as the Bohinj Ascent. But it wasn’t until a year later that four men from Bohinj became the first to complete the climb. The ascent took three days, and on Aug. 26, 1778, they reached the peak via Zeleni Plaz, marking their path with stone markers. Their historic climb led to Slovenes being recognized, according to the Slovenia Tourism Board, as “a true Alpine nation of explorers and mountaineers.” Mount Triglav’s successful summit attempt happened eight years before the ascent to Mont Blanc, 22 years before Grossglockner and 87 years before the Matterhorn.